MORE NEWS, 9-23: IT TAKES A WORLD TO FIGHT CLIMATE CHANGE; FUTURAMA!; LOTS OF INDIA WIND; FOR BETTER EMISSIONS TRADING

IT TAKES A WORLD TO FIGHT CLIMATE CHANGE
Costs of climate change deal would drop with truly global agreement, says report; Climate Group says full collaboration between rich and poor countries would help reduce costs of reaching carbon targets
Suzanne Goldenberg, 21 September 2009 (UK Guardian)

"A truly global climate change deal — with full collaboration from the developed and developing world — would dramatically reduce the costs of dealing with global warming and moving to a clean energy economy, [according to Breaking The Climate Deadlock; Cutting the Cost - The Economic Benefits of Collaborative Climate Action from former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair’s] Climate Group…

"The report said a broad-based [international] agreement with ambitious targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions would amplify the potential cost savings and benefits — including job creation and rise in GDP — of dealing with climate change…[S]uch a deal could create up to 10m new jobs by 2020, stimulate additional economic growth and accelerate sustainable development in developing countries."

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"Costs of carbon would also drop dramatically, said the report, the more countries join a global trading agreement to help meet targets on reducing emissions…Researchers at Cambridge found that a tonne of carbon would cost $65 for the European Union — if operating alone — to cut its emissions by 30% over 1990 levels. But if the US joined an agreement, the price of carbon would fall to $28. The carbon cost could drop much lower — to about $4 a tonne — if there were a "global green new deal" involving developed and developing countries agreed at the Copenhagen climate change meeting in December, the researchers found.

"…[The] agreement would have to be carefully constructed to encourage the rapid development of cleaner cars, and more efficient power stations and buildings, the report warns. Less ambitious targets would mean lower gains in terms of GDP and job creation…[The report] used computer simulations of economic activity, energy generation and greenhouse gas emissions developed by the Cambridge centre for climate change mitigation and Cambridge Econometric to make cost estimates of a range of scenarios."

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"It [was] released at the start of a week…focused on climate change…[A New York] is aimed at getting industrialised countries to commit to deep cuts in carbon emissions…G20 leaders [in Pittsburgh] will take on the increasingly contentious issue of climate finance: how to fund the move to cleaner energy technology in developing countries as well as protect the poorest countries who are the most vulnerable to surging seas and extreme temperatures brought by climate change.

"…[The Cutting The Cost report] seeks to build on earlier findings from the Stern review and others that it will cost far less to act now to mitigate man-made climate change than to deal with its catastrophic consequences…The benefits of a truly global deal would arrive through the greater efficiencies of economies of scale, knowledge sharing, and expanded trade and markets in new technology…The models showed slight increases in GDP under all the scenarios — though the greatest gains were in the event of a global agreement. In that case, projected global GDP would register a 0.8% increase over GDP with no climate action in 2020…There would also be more jobs created — 10 million by 2020 under a global deal compared with 1.1 million jobs if the EU acts alone."


FUTURAMA!
On Going; Mobilizing America’s Transportation Revolution

"America’s future as a global leader depends on new, advanced transportation solutions capable of handling the realities of global economics, serious environmental issues, energy and resource scarcity, changing public values and national security.

"…[Futurama 2.0: Mobilizing America’s Transportation Revolution; Assembling a visionary team to create innovative, sustainable and viable solutions for all future transportation in the United States, by David Muyres and Geoff Wardle, offers solutions that] should be considered and developed as a totally integrated systems network rather than a patchwork of separate systems."


The future of personal transport is coming fast. Wardle and Muyres say it's time to plan smart for it. (click to enlarge)

"The timing is now perfect for America’s forward-thinking political leadership to appoint a truly independent, multi-disciplinary, design-based team to create a compelling vision for this country’s long-term transportation needs…[A vision] that addresses energy, water, ecology and transportation from a holistic systems perspective…[and defines] a blueprint for the next 50 years…[on which] smart and reliable government policy can be created with clarity and confidence…

"The original 1939 Futurama vision exhibited at the New York World’s Fair and the subsequent Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 radically transformed American society and its economy. The resulting national highway system allowed the country to flourish for decades. Today, however, transportation as we know it…is in serious trouble…[A] Futurama 2.0 vision is needed for the next 50 years and beyond."

From RetroRacer13 via YouTube

"To create such a vision and help turn it into reality requires an extraordinary, multi-disciplinary core team…[using] the design discipline…[and] embracing the input and expertise of many disciplines…[to create] a future transportation blueprint derived from the Futurama 2.0 vision…

"The four major motivations…[are] (1) the highest ecological standards, (2) long-term American prosperity, (3) social equity, and (4) national security…Futurama 2.0 offers the [current bold White House] administration a way to generate optimism and solutions based on a fully researched and validated vision that the American people can trust and enthusiastically support…Extraordinary nations require extraordinary solutions—and extraordinary solutions require an extraordinary team."


LOTS OF INDIA WIND
Wind Power Holds the Key to Provide India with Clean, Green Energy Fast; Indian wind energy could cover 24% of the country’s power needs by 2030
September 9. 2009 (Global Wind Energy Council)

"Honorable Minister for New and Renewable Energy, Dr. Farooq Abdullah released a book titled Indian Wind Energy Outlook 2009… published jointly by the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) and Indian Wind Turbine Manufacturers Association (IWTMA).

"The study examines the potential of wind power in India up to the year 2030 and found that the technology, re-powering, untapped off-shore potential and furthering wind resource assessment could play a key part in the nation’s effort to provide energy to its ever growing demand in an economy which will boom and at the same time combat climate change…"

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"The report explains how wind energy can provide up to 24% of the India’s power needs by 2030 while attracting 475 bn Rs in investment every year and creating 213,000 ‘green collar’ jobs in manufacturing, project development, installation, operation, maintenance, consulting etc. At the same time, it would save a total of 5.5 bn tons of CO2 in that timeframe.

"The [report] explores three different scenarios for wind power – a Reference scenario based on figures from the International Energy Agency (IEA); a Moderate version which assumes that current policy measures and targets for renewable energy are met; and an Advanced Scenario which assumes that all policy options in favour of renewables have been adopted. These are then set against two demand projections for electricity demand…"

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"To date, 10 Indian states have implemented supporting policies for wind energy. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) is currently considering plans to introduce Generation Based Incentive (GBI) which is expected to attract Foreign Director Investment (FDIs) and Independent Power Producers (IPPs).

"The report is part of a wind industry campaign entitled ‘Wind Power Works’, which is coordinated by GWEC and supported by IWMTA. Its aim is to increase government awareness and positive action on wind energy in the run up to the COP 15 climate talks in Copenhagen in December 2009…The Indian Wind Turbine Manufacturers Association (IWTMA) is the only industrial body representing the country’s wind turbine manufacturers…[and] a founding member of the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC)…The Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) [with a membership of 1,500 organizations] is the credible and representative forum for the entire wind energy sector at the international level…"


FOR BETTER EMISSIONS TRADING
Report Warns That Carbon Derivatives Markets Pose Threats Congress Has Not Addressed
Kelly Trout, September 22, 2009 (Friends of the Earth via Common Dreams)

"The carbon trading system that would be created by the energy bill that passed the House of Representatives in June would be complex, volatile and prone to gaming. That’s the conclusion of a new report…by Friends of the Earth."

"…[Simpler, Smaller and More Stable: Designing carbon markets for environmental and financial integrity] also finds that emerging proposals to regulate derivatives are necessary but not sufficient to ensure the integrity of carbon markets. Instead, the report concludes, if policymakers wish to use a cap-and-trade system as a tool to reduce global warming pollution, they must design the system to be much simpler, smaller, and more stable than current proposals."

The Friends of the Earth report aims to make cap&trade better. (click to enlarge)

[Michelle Chan, author, Simpler, Smaller and More Stable:] “The byzantine carbon trading system that came from the House, and may now be included in the Senate bill, looks nothing like your textbook emissions trading scheme. It’s complex and has unique characteristics that demand attention…Fortunately, such a system has not yet been put in place. There’s still time to do this right. Simpler is better; the more that bells and whistles are included, the more chances there are to game the system.”

"The report suggests carbon trading could be made more straightforward by only allowing the trading of emissions permits (and excluding carbon offset credits) and by discouraging Wall Street speculators from dominating carbon markets…"